Self-Compassionate Professor

Dr. Megan O'Rourke describes her unique career journey out of academia immediately after earning her PhD, her path back into academia as a tenure-track faculty member, and her decision to leave again after earning tenure. In this episode, she describes her experiences on the tenure-track, what it felt like to earn tenure, and her decision to finally take a job with the U.S. Department of Agricultu...

Dr. Tracy Costello tells the story of waking up one morning and realizing she no longer wanted to be an academic. Particularly astute at networking, Tracy went on to find new opportunities, explaining that networking is simply relationship building. She also talks about how "altac" is both an inaccurate and derogatory term, the importance of trying on new career identities, as well as her current...

Dr. Chris Cornthwaite discusses the importance of writing your own story so that you can find the thread that runs through your life and begin to create a career vision that is authentic to your interests and passions--a vision that is bigger than the academic dream you once had. He also talks about how his mantra, "I'm f*cking unstoppable," helps him to overcome self-doubt as well as the importan...

In this episode, Dr. Margie Serrato talks about the thread running through her life and career. She describes being motivated by self-analysis from the time she chose her double major in psychology and anthropology as a college student; to the dissertation topic she chose in graduate school; to her discovery of the professional world of coaching. She also describes the extremely positive impact su...

In this episode, Dr. Melanie Peffer gives us permission to "go for it" and do the things that feel exciting, interesting, and fun. She explains the numerous career opportunities she has encountered since leaving her tenure-track job as well as her emerging interests in industry, coaching, consulting, and even authoring children's books. Melanie is honest about the fears she experienced when she de...

In this episode, Dr. Ashley Wellman gets REAL, sharing her story about the difficult and often dark ways her academic career has punctuated her personal life. After losing her husband suddenly though, Ashley found that creative writing helped her process her grief. And through this process, as she gained strength and realized her own worth, she also found herself closing the door on her academic c...

A rising star in graduate school, who was highly sought after for tenure-track positions, Dr. Shahaf describes the exhaustion and stress she experienced navigating a tenure-track job while also learning how to be a new mother. Caught up in the culture of overwork in academia, her peers and mentors celebrated the career opportunities that were opening for her, never cautioning that she may be doing...

In this episode, Dr. Ron Shapiro talks about his unique and effective job search methods, the importance of writing results-oriented and relevant resumes, the need for people to step up and find a mentor, and the fundamental cultural clashes between corporate and academic organizational cultures. Most notably, he challenges academics to see how their own university-trained worldviews may keep them...

An Associate Professor at University of Georgia, Dr. Rebecca Shisler Marshall introduces herself not just by academic title, but also as "a life coach, a Reike practitioner, a mindfulness instructor, and a Shamanic practitioner." In this episode, she explains feeling powerfully drawn to integrative wellness work and after some years as an academic, she finally surrendered to a wonderfully unique c...

In this episode, Dr. Dan Olson-Bang, Director of Professional and Career Development at Syracuse University, discusses his own journey out of academia after earning his PhD as well as offers expert advice to PhDs who are currently seeking their own alt-ac opportunities. In this discussion, Dan emphasizes the need for PhDs to recognize their own employability and viability, explains how to get beyo...

In this episode, Dr. Jessica Garrett Mills describes how she created a fulfilling career and balanced life by following an interest she started to develop soon after earning her PhD. Twelve years later, she draws on her expertise in executive functioning to coach and facilitate workshops for students, parents, educators and other professionals. And as if that's not enough, she lives a life of work...

Former professor, Dr. Beth Godbee, joins me for the first episode of Season 2! Dr. Godbee describes how to live life and career in process: open to imperfection, mindful of our bodies' messages, and grounded in the process of ongoing decision making based on personal commitments. She discusses her move from professor to entrepreneur, her discomfort with our productivity-based culture, and the ongo...

Carolyn Mackey discusses how she realized her work in higher education was harming her mental and physical health and how she made the decision to walk away. Influenced by her training in entrepreneurship, Reiki, and A Course in Miracles, she created a career that gave her peace and a sense of freedom. In this episode, Carolyn reminds us to keep it simple, to recognize when we're making decisions...

In this episode, Dr. Lenwood Hayman, Associate Professor of Behavioral Health Sciences at Morgan State University, describes to me the essential practices of love, self-love, self-examination, and meditation as he creates a career focused not on competition, self-interest, and perfectionism, but on compassion, listening, interdependence, and love. So many insights! 

Today, I offer a "compassionate breathing" meditation from the Center for Mindful Self-Compassion. It's been a tough week, a tough month, a tough year. The racial justice revolution and pandemic are calling us to pause. This is my way of pausing. And if you need to pause and offer yourself some self-compassion, you're invited to meditate with me. I also unexpectedly gift you with a cameo from my n...

This episode concludes my conversation with Dr. Marissa Floyd. In this interview, recorded two days ago, we catch up since we spoke eight months ago about her recent pandemic-related job loss. Although her life circumstances are much more challenging now, she continues to exude groundedness, wisdom, and humility. In this episode, she teaches us how we can do the same by harnessing a positive minds...

So much great advice in this episode! Dr. Marissa Floyd picks up where she left off in Episode 13 and tells us about why she loves her job and why she loves working in Costa Rica. She also offers advice to others who want to create their own career opportunities. This is Part 2 of a three-part series. We'll get an update from Marissa in the next episode. 

In this episode--a three-part interview series--Dr. Marissa Floyd drops some serious wisdom about how to create your own alt-ac career opportunities. Her recipe? Weave together your academic research with an outside internship and boldly seek out people and companies who can help you do exactly what you want to do. This interview is truly inspiring. 

Dr. Gloria Walker is an expert in career reinvention. While she helps others to reinvent themselves, she also has had three major career reinventions of her own. In this episode, she describes how with each change, she becomes clearer about who she is and what she cares about. She even discusses how her latest career has helped her to rediscover her intuition after having had it previously beat ou...

Because pandemic weirdness has taken over, I found that I needed a self-compassion break this week. Most of us need one right now so in this episode, I offer instructions about how to take a self-compassion break. My instructions are based on research in the area of Mindful Self-Compassion. 

In this episode, Dr. Erin Willer, Associate Professor in the Department of Communication Studies at the University of Denver, draws on Stephen Cope's book, "The Great Work of Your Life" to discuss how it shaped her own career journey as an academic. One of my favorite questions she asks in this episode is this: "What is this doing for my heart and soul as opposed to my vita?" This is a question al...

In the trailer, I tell my own career-wellness story, explain how self-compassion has changed the shape of my own career, and describe my vision for the Self-Compassionate Professor community--a place where, above all, faculty, grad students, and those in altac careers feel supported by others to take counter-cultural career paths. #careerwellness #selfcompassion #happyhealthyfulfilled  

In this episode, Natasha Thomas-Jackson and I talk about her balanced and truthful way of navigating life and career. As a social justice advocate, she says, “...social justice is internal and external. It’s psycho-spiritual as well as socio-political...All of my work, at its root, involves healing… healing ourselves, homes, communities, political system, and our world…My why is that I’m in love w...

In this episode, Shawna discusses how she lives by her own rules and how she created her own career in her own way! In this episode, we talk about the flexibility and freedom she's been able to create and how she's stayed resilient during the hard times. Unlike most, Shawna doesn't abandon her own needs, values, and happiness in pursuit of culturally-defined rules. This is a great episode!

In this episode, I talk to Dr. Ginger Moran, former Professor of English Literature. She describes her transition from an academic career to creating her own own career, involving writing, coaching, and entrepreneurship. Ginger emphasizes the challenges of living your dreams, but she also emphasizes the pain of living a small life.